AP Biology Chapter 1 Practice Test

Which of the following is an attribute of living things? A. They must be carbon-based. B. They must be able to breathe oxygen. C. They must be able to evolve and adapt. D. They must be able to reproduce sexually. E. All of the above

What is the appropriate term for an interacting group of individuals of a single type? A. species B. population C. ecosystem D. community E. habitat

Which series of terms is in the sequence of biological organization from the simplest to the most complex? A. community, population, ecosystem, habitat, biosphere B. tissue, organ system, organ, cell, organism C. organism, ecosystem, community, population, biosphere D. cell, tissue, organ, population, community E. molecule, tissue, cell, organelle, organ

Emergent properties of living systems are defined as properties that _______. A. are apparent only when an organism is studied at the molecular level B. are due to the arrangement and interactions of parts as complexity increases C. are evident during only one portion of the life cycle of an organism D. define the cell's surroundings E. none of the above

Which of the following can be considered a biological system? A. a single liver cell B. a pond C. the biosphere D. a salmon's cardiovascular system E. all of the above

Sequencing a protein to discover the sequence of amino acids that make it up is an example of ________. Understanding how that protein functions and interacts with other proteins in a cell is an example of ________. A. systems biology; reductionism B. hypothesis-driven science; systems biology C. reductionism; systems biology D. natural selection; systems biology E. inductive reasoning; reductionism

In an ecosystem nutrients _________ and energy ________. A. are wasted; is burned B. cycle; flows through C. flow through; is recycled D. are created; is lost E. disappear; can not be created nor destroyed

The chemical energy used by (most) organisms for metabolism and growth ultimately comes from _____. A. heat B. the decomposition of plants and other organic debris C. the sun D. carbon dioxide E. evolution

Which of the following is the fundamental unit of structure and function in living organisms? A. organelle B. tissue C. cell D. organ E. organism

What is the molecular commonality that is the basis of life's variety? A. protein B. DNA C. the ecosystem D. natural selection E. mutation

How is the information encoded in DNA actually used by organisms? A. Proteins are built directly from the information in the DNA. B. DNA is translated into protein and then transcribed to RNA. C. DNA leaves the nucleus and interacts directly with other molecules in the cell. D. The information in the DNA diffuses throughout the cell. E. The information in DNA is transcribed to RNA and then translated into protein.

In which kingdom can multicellular eukaryotic, photosynthetic organisms be found? A. Archaea B. Fungi C. Protista D. Plantae E. Animalia

Which of the following domains is prokaryotic? A. Eukarya B. Protista. C. Archaea D. Fungi E. The domain Bacteria, the domain Archaea, and the domain Eukarya all contain at least some prokaryotic members.

Which kingdom within the domain Eukarya is composed of organisms that are generally unicellular (single-celled)? A. Plantae B. Fungi C. Animalia D. Protista E. Archaea

Eukaryotic organisms that decompose dead organisms and absorb the nutrients are generally found in which kingdom? A. Archaea B. Bacteria C. Plantae D. Animalia E. Fungi

Natural selection tends to act at which of the following levels? A. population B. species C. phylum D. kingdom E. class

Which of the following observations and inferences led Charles Darwin to his theory of natural selection as the mechanism for evolution? A. Individuals in a population of any species vary in many heritable traits. B. Individuals with heritable traits best-suited to the local environment will generally produce a disproportionate number of healthy, fertile offspring. C. A population of any species has the potential to produce far more offspring than will survive to produce offspring of their own. D. Individuals of a population are unequal in the likelihood of surviving and reproducing. E. Darwin synthesized his theory of natural selection from all of the above observations and inferences.

With evolution as the core theme of biology, we can explain traits shared by organisms as evidence of _______ and traits that differ among organisms as evidence of _________. A. descent from a common ancestor; chance B. coincidence; adaptation C. systems biology; reductionism D. descent from a common ancestor; adaptation through natural selection E. qualitative data; quantitative data

Experimentation is only one part of the process of scientific inquiry, but it is a very important step because it _____. A. gives the investigator a systematic, unbiased result B. allows rejection of some alternative hypotheses C. ensures that hypotheses can be confirmed with certainty D. ensures that the variable being tested is measured without error E. gives scientists a chance to work in the laboratory

Radon is a radioactive gas that seeps into homes from the soil. It is thought to be a leading cause of lung cancer. A research team investigates this theory. They gather large amounts of data on basement radon concentrations and lung cancer rates and conclude that the more radon there is in a home, the more likely is lung cancer. After the study is published, other researchers criticize it by asserting that the studied neighborhoods with higher radon concentrations also have a higher percentage of older people and a higher percentage of cigarette smokers than the low-radon neighborhoods. Both advanced age and cigarette smoking increase the risk of lung cancer. This criticism, if correct, shows that the radon study suffered from _____. A. a lack of replication B. an unfalsifiable hypothesis C. uncontrolled variables D. nonsystematic observation and analysis of data E. a small sample size

Which one of the following statements is most clearly inductively derived? A. If the animals observed require organic molecules as nutrients, then it can be concluded that all animals require organic molecules as nutrients. B. If all flying animals are birds, then it can be concluded that bats are birds. C. Because worms lack bones, they are classified as invertebrates. D. A paramecium moves by means of the rhythmic motion of its cilia. E. An elephant is warm-blooded because it is a mammal.

Two garden plots were planted with corn. The soil was similar in each, and equal amounts of water were applied to each plot. One plot was fertilized, and the other was not. The experimenters measured the yield as bushels of corn from each plot. The plot that did not receive the fertilizer was the _____. A. experimental plot B. control plot C. controlled variable D. dependent variable E. emergent property

A hypothesis must be testable and falsifiable to be scientifically valid. Being testable and falsifiable means that _____. A. some conceivable observation or experiment could reveal whether a given hypothesis is correct or incorrect B. only a controlled experiment can prove whether the hypothesis is correct or incorrect C. the hypothesis has been proved wrong D. there must be several options in the hypothesis to choose from, one of which is correct E. if the hypothesis is not correct, the experiment was a failure

At which point is a scientific investigator most likely to use deductive reasoning? A. during initial observation(s) B. during the formulation of a hypothesis C. in establishing a test of a hypothesis D. in arranging for a peer review E. after the careful analysis of both the qualitative and the quantitative data recorded in the study

Which of the following is outside the realm of scientific inquiry A. determining the physical causes for physical phenomena B. formulating testable hypotheses in seeking natural causes for natural phenomena C. explaining naturally occurring events D. addressing questions of ethical dilemmas E. determining the efficacy of a low-carbohydrate diet

A company was testing a new drug it thought would help decrease the risk of transmission of viruses from mother to fetus. In an experiment to test the compound, an investigator gave 400 pregnant female rats a small dose of the experimental drug and inoculated each with a type of virus known to cause disease in rats. At the same time, 400 other pregnant rats were given only the virus. Of the rat pups born to the females that received both the virus and the drug, 203 showed no symptoms of the disease; 205 rat pups born to the virus-only females showed symptoms. From this test, we can best conclude _____. A. that the drug is 5% effective and testing on humans should begin B. that the drug seems to have little effect on viral transmission at the dosage given C. nothing, because no independent variable could be identified D. nothing, because no control group was used in the test of the drug E. that the drug enhances disease progression

The best method for determining whether bean plants require sodium is to _____. A. measure the amount of sodium in a few bean plants B. measure how fast radioactive sodium enters the plant C. look for sodium in leaf tissues using autoradiography D. analyze root contents for sodium E. grow bean plants with and without sodium

In experimental procedures, repetition of the procedures _____. A. is not necessary if the scientist obtains enough background information B. is too difficult for researchers doing fieldwork C. is necessary before assuming that a given set of results is correct D. should always be done by changing a variable E. wastes money that can be better spent doing new experiments

Should an experiment test only one variable at a time? Why or why not? A. Yes, an experiment should only test one variable at a time. That way, the experiment will only have to be performed once. B. Yes, an experiment should only test one variable at a time. This ensures that the experimental outcome is clearly due to one identifiable factor. C. No, it is not necessary to test only one variable per experiment, especially when time is of the essence. D. As long as the experiment is repeated a sufficient number of times, it doesn't matter how many variables are used. E. none of the above

A theory is _____. A. a poorly supported idea that has little backing but might be correct B. a well-supported concept that has broad explanatory power C. the same thing as a hypothesis D. not correct unless it is several years old E. a concept that, once established in the scientific literature, can be modified but never rejected, even when new scientific methods produce data that don't fit